The Saga of Rex - The Animated Project

I was a bit hesitant about posting this here, since I'm trying to keep this blog focused on Shadow Planet Productions and its game projects. After discussing the matter with Joe, we decided that it would be okay to share this new project of mine on here. Besides, it might at one point become very relevant to this blog—Joe and I are both interested in eventually bringing Rex to a game platform.



So here's the scoop: For the past 11 days, I've been running a Kickstarter Campaign to finance the first four minutes of my proposed Animated Feature Film, The Saga of Rex. Please have a look at the plan I laid out and the cool rewards available. I'm hoping to make a valuable contribution to the art of Classical Animation. I hope you'll be with me on this journey. Visit my Kickstarter page here.

Early Unused Boss Prototype

When creating ITSP, a lot of our early prototypes ended up on the cutting floor, as you can see from our 2007 trailer (http://youtu.be/kx_qAzX1DyU). This was one of my favorite prototype that got cut, and I wish we could have worked it out in the final game. Although the prototype played very smoothly, the video capture is a bit choppy, but unfortunately, that is all that remains from this.

ITSP Camera Explained

Both Joe and I wanted to make sure that ITSP would look like people were watching an animated film rather than just playing a game per se. To achieve this, we needed a camera that was not only cinematic and smooth, but one that would also help stage the action and layout in a pleasing and natural fashion.

For this complicated task, we turned to two of our brilliant scripters, Ryan Meyer and Chris Eng. Here's a video of Ryan explaining some of the technical issues he was faced with while accomplishing this difficult assignment.

Prometheus Twitter Contest

Shadow Planet Productions and Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet are proud to be included in Xbox's Exclusive Prometheus content alongside some great alien-themed games! To celebrate, we are giving away 20 codes for a free copy of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet on Xbox Live! To enter, follow @ShadowPlanet and retweet the message below:

RT to win a free copy of @ShadowPlanet in honor of the #Xbox @PrometheusMovie Alien-Game promo! Details: http://bit.ly/Nnwb7V #ITSPContest

1 entry per person.  You must retweet before midnight pst June 14th.  The winners will be chosen at random on June 15th.  Employees of @FuelcellGames, Microsoft, and their families are not eligible, sorry :(

Interview @ Reminisc3.com

Check out this recent interview with Joe and I discussing ITSP.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is now on PC!

Pre-order ITSP for PC at 25% off on Steam until April 17th

Go check it out!

ITSP Picks up NAVIGaTR Award

Insanely twisted Shadow Planet just picked up a National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers Award for Best Original Light Mix Score, which means that this one goes to our sound and original music composer, Andrew Scott! Congrats dude!

Full results here.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet PC Release Date Announced

Official Press Release

Shadow Planet Productions is pleased to announce Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet will finally be unleashed on the PC gaming community. The critically acclaimed game was recently awarded the BAFTA for "Best Debut Game", the Annie Award (animation's highest honor) for "Best Animated Video Game", and has received numerous prizes and nominations from industry media outlets.

Shadow Planet Productions' partners and creators of ITSP, Michel Gagné and Joe Olson are particularly excited about this release as it will not only feature the single player Campaign and multiplayer Lantern Run, but will also include the Shadow Hunters Co-op mode which was released as a separate Game Add-On for the Xbox LIVE Arcade version. Players can play locally or online with their friends to defeat the infectious shadow entity once and for all!

"Seeing ITSP run on PC is a sight to behold", said Gagné, "but what I'm really excited about is to finally have Shadow Hunters as part of the main package. I feel like that Co-op mode didn't get the chance it deserved as a separate Game Add-On, but this time around, I'm confident it will". “ITSP is right at home on today’s powerful gaming PCs”, said Olson, “with increased resolution, improved controls, and two multiplayer modes we truly believe the PC version of ITSP packs in a lot of value.”

In conjunction with the PC release, the Xbox LIVE Arcade version will be discounted to 800 MSP. The Shadow Hunters Game Add-On will continue to be available for 400 MSP, letting Xbox 360 owners complete their Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet experience.

Additionally, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet will be available for pre-sale on Steam for 25% off one week prior to release, beginning April 10th, 2012 and ending April 16th, 2012.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet for PC will be available for purchase on Steam on April 17th, 2012 for $14.99 USD and on Games For Windows LIVE Marketplace for 1200 MSP.

For more information on Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet visit www.shadow-planet-productions.com.

Airship Travelogues Episode 016: Rising Shadow

Learn how Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet came to be, why it’s not on Wii and where it’s going to appear next.

Michel Gagné and Joe Olson of Shadow Planet Productions describe how XBLA hit Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet came to be, why it ended up on Xbox instead of Wii and what platform it’s coming to next. Listen to podcast here.

X-Bit Show in Seattle - March 30th

The X-Bit show, which debut on March 30th in Seattle, will feature lots of footage of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet on a multi-screen set-up. According to show producer, Teo Acosta, "Our VJ is incredibly talented, and I think people's minds will explode when they see Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet projected on 4-5 screens." If you're in the area, make sure you check it out!

ITSP Wins BAFTA for "Best Debut Game"

Joe and I were so sad that we couldn't attend the BAFTA ceremony, but we made sure to have our eyes glued to the live streaming version of the show. We anxiously awaited with sweaty palms as the "Best Debut Game" category was announced. Then, our minds were blown... pure and simple. Watch the video below.